ROY HEWETTFew countries can compete with SA for its extremes on so many fronts.
From the highs of natural beauty to the lows of education standards and murder rates, ‘average’ seldom seems to apply on any of the international rating scales in this southernmost country of Africa.
The rich vein of extremes seems entrenched in the SA psyche.
For its range and variety we rank at the top for natural beauty. Table Mountain, the Cape Peninsula and Cape Winelands have few rivals for iconic vistas and awesome beauty.
The beaches, Cape Point and Kirstenbosch draw myriad tourists every year.
The contrasts between the east and west coasts of our country are staggering… relatively humid and forested coastal zones with many fascinating rivers characterise the east, while the west reflects aridity and the stark beauty of semi-desert topography.
The Drakensberg, Lowveld and game parks raise the tourist attractability to levels that compete with the best.
Road trips along the Garden Route and through the Karoo know few equals for unrivalled aesthetic appeal.
Each province has its own unique attractions.
And then we have the lows — that are paradoxically terrifyingly high — of unemployment, school failure rates, driving offences, murder and sexual abuse crimes.
Motor vehicle accident rates feature amongst the worst in the world.
Drug abuse, pollution of water bodies and plastic pollution feature at the bottom, or top, depending on the comparative approach.
Sadly we have the dubious honour of having plummeted from the ‘rainbow nation’ of infinite promise and hope to one where broken promises and corruption have fostered ‘state capture’ and grand theft on a scale not seen in many countries.
From the dark days of apartheid, through the halcyon ‘new’ SA of 1994, the mess of failing state institutions and dangerously disenchanted youth serve to highlight the reality of our country extremes define our journey.
The title of Alan Paton’s Cry, The Beloved Country takes on a new and critically urgent meaning in our current milieu.
In a macabre reflection of the dying gasps of Planet Earth as man’s wanton destruction reaps its desserts, SA harvests the fruits of corruption and institutionalised theft, incompetence and self-enrichment… and our country weeps.
